brake horsepower

American  

noun

1. the horsepower made available by an engine or turbine for driving machinery other than itself, as measured by a dynamometer.

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brake horsepower British  

noun

1.  bhp.  the rate at which an engine does work, expressed in horsepower. It is measured by the resistance of an applied brake

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How does brake-horsepower compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• brake horsepower vs. horsepower

Example Sentences

The driver had also told police his Evo sports car had 330 brake horsepower but Tregonning told the Accelerate YouTube channel that he had souped it up to almost 900 brake horsepower.

From BBC • Oct. 8, 2025

Examples of the Renault 5 Turbo Group B, capable of a monstrous 300 brake horsepower, sold for €195,500 at Bonhams, €257,600 at RM Sotheby’s and €321,840 at Artcurial.

From New York Times • Feb. 17, 2017

Formula One bosses have been discussing future rules with commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone among those backing a proposal to increase engine power to more than 1,000 brake horsepower in 2017.

From Reuters • Jan. 24, 2015

Not to mention the fact that we still measure the oomph of a Porsche 911 in, er, brake horsepower.

From The Guardian • Feb. 10, 2013

By accelerating up to 1,200 revolutions per minute 70 brake horsepower could be obtained, and a maximum of 80 brake horse-power was actually attained with the type.

From A History of Aeronautics by Vivian, Evelyn Charles